Written In The Sand
by Minute Maid Apple Juice
Summary: Alex O'Connell is in his last year of private school expecting it to be pretty much as uneventful as the rest of his years. All is going well until he meets Monifa, a prophecy begins to come true, and an old enemy returns from the undead.
1. Disclaimer

Disclaimer: I don't own The Mummy or The Mummy Returns. I only own the plot and any new characters. 


	2. London, 1943

Alex O'Connell sat in his Ancient History class with his notebook open, waiting to be filled with notes. He always hated the 20 minutes before class actually began. That's what he got for getting to school as soon as the first bell rang. He adjusted his tie, loosening it up a bit, and ran his hand through his hair causing it to stick out at places. That was the only bad thing about going to a private school. Uniforms. They were so confining. Not to mention a little itchy.  
  
Apart from three giggly girls in the front of the class, he was the only one in the room. None of his friends shared this class with him.  
  
He sighed.  
  
He wished the girls would stop looking in his direction. Normally he wouldn't have minded their attention, but it was just aggravating this early in the day. Slowly the class began to fill and the only seat open was the one to his immediate left. It was always free.  
  
"Alright, everyone, settle down. You were all assigned to your groups yesterday. Now I want you got team up with your partners and get to work on your projects." Mr. Dixon said as walked into the room and sat behind his desk after the bell rang.  
  
Alex grabbed his things and headed to the front of the room to meet up with Matthew and Elizabeth. As he did so a girl entered the room. Once seated, Alex ignored what Matthew had began to say about what the group should do next and got a better look at the new girl.  
  
She had waist long, black hair that fell perfectly straight. Her uniform was new and it was obvious that she was new to this school because her knee- high socks actually covered her knees. None of the girls wore theirs up all the way. A daring fashion statement is what they called it. Her skirt was wrinkle free and her sweater vest fitted her slim figure perfectly. The gray and white brought out her tanned skin.  
  
Alex gulped as she and the teacher walked towards his group. He immediately pretended to be listening to what Elizabeth was now saying, but he could help but notice the way that the new girl's deep brown eyes reminded him of someone.  
  
Mr. Dixon cleared his throat purposely getting the three's attention. Elizabeth and Matthew did their own evaluation of the girl as the professor made his introduction.  
  
"This is Monifa Bay, she'll be joining your group."  
  
Mr. Dixon left leaving the four in an awkward silence.  
  
Alex gestured for her to sit as he pulled up a seat beside him. She mumbled a thanks as she took the offered seat.  
  
"What kind of a name is Monifa?" Elizabeth asked, her true nature showing.  
  
"It's Egyptian." Alex muttered.  
  
Where had her heard the name Bay before?  
  
"Egyptian?"  
  
"I came from Cairo, yes."  
  
Alex jumped a little at the sudden sound of her voice. It sounded sweet. Soft. Pleasant to listen to, unlike Elizabeth's whine.  
  
"You lived in Cairo?" Alex asked interested.  
  
"Yes, lived there all of my life. Until now, of course."  
  
"My mother and uncle lived there. My mum was a librarian at the museum before she became an explorer. I'm Alex." He said extending his hand.  
  
"Alex O'Connell?" she asked extending her hand to meet his.  
  
"Yes." He asked surprised that she knew his name.  
  
"Wow. What was Ahm Shere like? Is it true that you wore the Bracelet?"  
  
"Could we leave this until later? We have a project to work on." Elizabeth jutted in.  
  
"She's right and we need to tell Monifa what our project is and we need to start working on it. We didn't get anything done yesterday."  
  
Monifa blushed as she pulled out her notebook from her book bag and dug around for a pencil.  
  
Elizabeth shot her a glare, but Monifa didn't seem to notice. In fact, she couldn't seem to stop sneaking glances at Alex and in return, Alex couldn't stop thinking about Monifa.  
  
A/N: So, you like? I have been meaning to write a 'Mummy' fic and this is my first one in this category. I generally stick to X-Men and Tamora Pierce, so tell me if you want me to continue.  
  
Thanks!! 


	3. The Study Group

As it turned out, Monifa was in Alex's arithmetic and English class as well. They came to know each other a little better and Elizabeth, Mathew, and Monifa all walked with Alex to his house so they could work on their project that was about what life was like in Ancient Egypt. Figuring that the O'Connell Mansion had more books on Egypt than the library, the group made Alex's house their base of operations.  
  
"How big exactly is this project?" Monifa asked.  
  
"Big enough to pass or fail us this semester." Mathew answered not at all in a good mood. In his eyes she was one more problem to deal with. "You came at an difficult time."  
  
"Oh." She said meekly.  
  
"But you lived in Cairo, right? You can help us on comparing what life was like back then and what life in like now in the present." Alex put in trying to get people to relax.  
  
"What was school like in Egypt?" Elizabeth asked already starting the interview.  
  
"I didn't go. My mother taught me."  
  
"So then why did you move to London?" Mathew asked as if what Monifa had just said didn't make any sense, his patience with her already wearing thin.  
  
"My mother died and I was sent here to live with my aunt." Monifa said matter-of-factly, "Is that a good enough answer?"  
  
The four walked in silence the rest of the way.  
  
*~*~*  
  
"Hello, Alex. Who are your friends?" Rick O'Connell asked as he came home just a few minutes after the four finished getting settled. He had dirt all over him, but he was careful not to track any mud inside.  
  
"Hello, Dad. This is Elizabeth Baker, Mathew Jones, and Monifa Bay." Alex said making the introductions. The fact that his father was a complete mess didn't faze him one bit. It happened all of the time.  
  
Rick paused at the name 'Bay' but shook it off as a coincidence.  
  
"Nice to meet you all." He said as he left to go clean himself up.  
  
Despite all of the tension in the room, the four immediately went to work.  
  
*~*~*  
  
Three hours passed, and Elizabeth and Mathew had long since left, but Alex and Monifa still kept on reading.  
  
"I think my eyes are going cross-eyed." Alex stated as he closed his book.  
  
"Me too." Monifa agreed pushing her book aside.  
  
"I didn't know you could read hieroglyphs." He said as he noticed that instead of small printed words, her book was filled with the ancient symbols.  
  
"I learned it from my father when I was a little girl."  
  
"Where is he, your father?" Alex asked his curious nature getting the best of him.  
  
"I don't know. He left me when I was eight. I haven't seen him since."  
  
"I'm sorry."  
  
"Don't be."  
  
They sat in silence for a moment.  
  
"Care to look around?" Alex asked.  
  
He nearly laughed as he saw Monifa's face instantly lighten up.  
  
"You mean to look at the artifacts in your house?"  
  
"Something like that."  
  
Evelyn O'Connell found the two, ten minutes later, hunched over a display case in the main foyer.  
  
"Is your friend staying for dinner?" She asked.  
  
She watched her son and his friend jump at the sound of her voice and placed a hand over her mouth to hide her smile.  
  
"Mother. This is Monifa." Alex said face flustered a little. He hated when his mum snuck up on him like that.  
  
Monifa walked up and shook hands with Evelyn, bowing her head a bit. Alex noticed that she had bowed her head when she met him in class and when she met his dad. How odd. Evelyn just looked on with interest. 'So Alex finally picked a girl with manners' she found herself thinking.  
  
"I'm sorry to decline your dinner invitation, Mrs. O'Connell, but I think I better head home and finish the rest of my school work. I'll just go get my things." She said excusing herself as she headed back to the library.  
  
"Decline my dinner invitation? I like this one already." Evelyn said once Monifa was out of earshot.  
  
"Mother! She's just my friend. We only met today."  
  
"Pity. The one girl I like and she isn't a romantic interest."  
  
Alex had no answer to that.  
  
"Thank you for inviting me over, Alex. I'll see you at school tomorrow. Nice meeting you, Mrs. O'Connell." Monifa said as she headed towards the front door her book bag slung over her shoulder.  
  
"I hope to see you again, dear."  
  
"Good bye." Alex said shooting his mother an evil glare.  
  
"What was that for?" Evelyn asked as the door closed shut.  
  
"You know what you did." He said as he walked away.  
  
"Gees Evie, way to embarrass the boy in front of his new lady friend." Jonathan, Evelyn's brother, joked as he walked down the stairs into the main hall.  
  
"She wasn't even here half the time. Honestly, I was just having a little fun."  
  
"Well I think you were the only one laughing." Rick pointed out as he came in from the study, no trace of mud left on his body.  
  
"Oh please. She was a rather sweet girl. What was her name again?"  
  
"Monifa. Monifa Bay." Rick answered.  
  
"Bay as in Ardeth?"  
  
"Well I don't think there are that many 'Bay's' out there." Jonathan said.  
  
"But what would his daughter be doing here?" Evelyn asked.  
  
"Perhaps its just coincidence." Rick suggested, but didn't seem to convince anyone.  
  
"How about that dinner?" Jonathan asked rubbing his hands together.  
  
*~*~*  
  
MEANWHILE BACK AT AHM SHERE....  
  
"Dig faster. We are in a time frame here." Dr. Michael Scott yelled at the slaves he had digging in the sand.  
  
"Sir, the girl, she's in London." A messenger informed Dr. Scott as he dismounted from his horse.  
  
"Are you sure?"  
  
"Yes."  
  
"And her birthday, February 13th?"  
  
"Is in a week."  
  
Dr. Scott turned and faced the giant excavation sight.  
  
"Excellent."  
  
A/N: I updated, ImhotepsLover, just like I promised.  
  
Like? No like? Thanks to all of the reviewers so far. All....four of you!! 


	4. Many Returns

Two days slowly passed, and Alex and Monifa found themselves, once again, ditched by Elizabeth and Mathew in the O'Connells' library. Monifa stood and backed away from the tiny model as carefully as she could. She was afraid that if she made any sudden movement, it would fall to the ground and shatter. She had put way too much time and effort into that blasted thing for it to brake now.  
  
Alex walked over to her.  
  
"Are we?" She asked him mesmerized.  
  
"We're done."  
  
"Done?!!"  
  
"No thanks to Mathew and Elizabeth of course."  
  
"But we are done?"  
  
"Yes."  
  
She squealed in delight as she threw her arms around his neck and hugged him. He wrapped his arms around her and it took them a good thirty seconds to realize what they were doing. They immediately pulled apart, embarrassed.  
  
"Is that what you've been working on?" Jonathan asked as walked in, hands in his pockets, acting like he hadn't seen a thing.  
  
"Don't go near it, Uncle Jon." Alex warned.  
  
"I'm not going to touch it. Looks nice that's all. Where's what's his name and that other girl?"  
  
"They left one hour ago, sometime around five."  
  
"Five? That would have been about four hours ago, mate."  
  
"It's nine-o-clock?" Monifa asked horrified, "I need to call my aunt."  
  
"I believe Evie took care of it. I'll drive you if you need a ride home." Jonathan offered.  
  
"Thank you Mr.--"  
  
"Jon."  
  
"Thank you....Jon."  
  
Jonathan winked at Alex.  
  
"I'll get the car started."  
  
As soon as Jonathan left, Alex and Monifa suddenly became shy of each other. Monifa began to gather her things, but her hands kept shaking and she couldn't seem to cram her book into her bag.  
  
"Need help?" Alex asked as he steadied her hands.  
  
Alex's touch sent a tingling sensation loose in her body. Her cheeks felt hot.  
  
"Maybe just a little." She whispered.  
  
Suddenly they both became all too aware on how close they were and how each other's faces were only inches away.  
  
"WHERE IS SHE???"  
  
The sudden yell from downstairs thrust the two back into reality.  
  
Alex knew that voice, but what he didn't know was that Monifa knew it too. Alex ran to the door and was surprised to find that Monifa had beaten him to it; her book bag clutched in her hand.  
  
*~*~*  
  
Evelyn had seen Jonathan come down the stairs and had asked them how the two were coming.  
  
"They are done with their project thing and I am going to take Monifa home." Jonathan replied.  
  
"I can do it." Rick commented from his wife's side, "I am on my way out anyway."  
  
"Sounds alright with me." Jonathan said as he threw Rick the keys.  
  
As soon as he caught them, the door flew open.  
  
"Where is she?" Ardeth Bay yelled as he stormed into the hallway, "Helen said she was here, now where is she?!"  
  
He was wearing his usual black robes, only they seemed a little worse for wear. He face was hard with worry and rage.  
  
"Father?!!"  
  
The four adults looked up and saw Monifa bounding down the stairs and Alex trying to keep up with her.  
  
"Father, what are you doing here?" she asked overcome with sudden emotion.  
  
Ardeth pulled her into his arms and kept her there for a minute. He stood back and studied her, keeping his hands on her shoulders.  
  
"Mama's dead." She sobbed.  
  
Ardeth hugged her again.  
  
"I know."  
  
"You weren't there and they sent me here. Why did you leave me?"  
  
When he didn't answer Monifa backed away, wiping her eyes dry.  
  
"Papa?"  
  
"I need to tell you something. I need to tell you all something."  
  
*~*~*  
  
They settled in the next room, sitting on sofas and chairs. Rick and Evelyn sat in chairs, while Jonathan and Alex shared a sofa. Ardeth and Monifa shared the other sofa.  
  
"I must start with the beginning. Your mother never wanted you to grow up with a Madji. The women never traveled with us, but she didn't want to stay and raise you at the camp. She took you to Cairo and I saw you as much as I could. But them, in your eighth year, Imhotep rose again from the undead along with the Scorpion King and I left to help the O'Connells send them both to the underworld.  
  
"I was ready to come back, after that. I wanted to see you both so much, and I was almost to Cairo, but then this man, a Dr. Scott, started to dig at Ahm Shere and for eight years we've tried to stop him.  
  
"You mean He's back?" Evelyn asked in total shock.  
  
"I don't know for sure, but if he isn't now he will be soon. That's why I came here. To warn you." He said gesturing the O'Connell's and Jonathan, "To protect you." He continued, looking straight at his daughter.  
  
"Why would I need protecting?" She questioned completely confused.  
  
Before Ardeth could answer the front door was blasted off of its hinges. Ardeth grabbed Monifa and shoved her over to Alex, who had jumped onto his feet.  
  
"Hide her!!"  
  
"Do what he says, Alex." Rick urged, "Into the study, now. Baracade the door and block the window."  
  
Alex held onto Monifa's arm as he dragged her into the other room.  
  
"Father?" She asked scared.  
  
"Do it and stay hidden. I'll be fine." Ardeth yelled.  
  
Before Alex shut the study's door, she saw the dust clear and many red robed men ran in to the room. She helped Alex put the desk in front of the door and pull the bookshelf in front of the window. They listened to fighting going on outside. Monifa cried out as she pressed her face against Alex's chest.  
  
She was so scared. He could feel her pain. Something wasn't right here. Why was protecting her so important? What did Imhotep want with her? He rubbed her back trying to calm her. He was scared too, but his anxiousness quickly died being replaced by adrenalin and fury.  
  
No one will take Monifa away from him.  
  
The study door and the desk in front of it suddenly exploded. Alex threw himself on top of Monifa trying to block her from the shards of wood. He rolled off of her making sure she was ok.  
  
Two guys in red robes and red masks came into the room and picked both of them up on their feet. They roughly dragged them into the main room where Rick, Evelyn, Jonathan, and Ardeth were gagged and tied to their seats. They started to tie up Alex when He walked in. His decayed body walked difyantly into the room.  
  
Monifa cringed at the sight of him. As he walked toward her the scenery changed. She hastily looked around her, but she wasn't in the study. No one was holding onto her. She stood alone in a simple, white Egyptian dress. She was in an Egyptian place and the high priest Imhotep was walking toward her.  
  
She backed away as he came closer, but she wasn't afraid of him. She was afraid of what he wanted. He had been after her ever since she was a little girl.  
  
"Omorose." He whispered seductively as he put his arms around her waist and pulled her close to him.  
  
Monifa tried to pull away.  
  
"Nefertiri! Nefertiri!" She cried speaking in ancient Egyptian , "Help me!"  
  
Alex watched glaring at Imhotep and at the way he handled Monifa. Rick just looked at his wife. Evelyn was seeing it to. Remembering. She was calling for her to save her, but she couldn't do anything this time.  
  
"Not this time, my pet. You will be mine, and we will rule, together, just like I promised. Anuk-su-namun failed me. I should have never left you for her. I thought I loved her. I thought she loved me. I was mistaken."  
  
"Leave me alone. I shall call the guards."  
  
"Your word against mine," he leaned in close, "slave."  
  
"No!"  
  
"Why do you fight me? You know I will get what I want. One way or another you will be mine."  
  
He gripped her waist so tight, she whimpered in pain. He jammed his lips against hers and the vision of what seemed like the past was gone. She was back in the study kissing his vile mouth.  
  
She screamed in panic and kicked out with her feet.  
  
The man behind her hit the backside of her head with the handle of his dagger, knocking her out cold.  
  
"Put her in the car." Imhotep ordered, "Kill them."  
  
He walked behind the man carrying the unconscious girl, leaving six other men to finish Ardeth, Jonathan, and the O'Connells off.  
  
A/N: Dun dun dun!! Tell me if you like. 


	5. Remembering

Alex kicked down the last guard. He smiled to himself as he realized that it was the one who had tied him up. He had done a very poor job and Alex had broken free very easily. It was only a matter of time before he had thrown Ardeth's fallen dagger over to the man to set himself and everyone else free. Soon, all five of them were fighting.  
  
Imhotep's men had no guns. They only had daggers and swards.  
  
The fight was over before it began.  
  
"Where is he taking her?" Ardeth asked one of the attackers, his blade pressed against his neck.  
  
Ardeth's prisoner breathed rapidly, not sure if he was going to tell.  
  
"WHERE ARE THEY GOING?"  
  
He pressed the blade in deeper as Alex watched, in amazement, the will of the captive brake.  
  
"He's taking her to Ahm Shere." The man squealed.  
  
Rick and Evelyn looked at each other. Jonathan sat, listening, trying to catch his breath.  
  
"Why?" Ardeth questioned.  
  
"I don't know."  
  
The dagger cut into flesh just the tiniest bit. Blood began to trickle down the prisoner's neck.  
  
He yelled in pain and fear.  
  
"Something about a mark." He choked out, "Something about her being the Chosen One."  
  
Evelyn gasped as she began to remember more about her past life. The man's ramblings were triggering flashbacks.  
  
"What do you mean by 'Chosen One'?" Ardeth asked. As soon as he asked the question, he knew what the answer was going to be.  
  
"The mark. She has the mark. That's all I know, I swear."  
  
The sound of the dagger ending the man's life with one clean swipe brought Evelyn out of her daze.  
  
She turned to Rick and gripped his shoulders tightly.  
  
"We have to find her. We have to get her away from him." She turned to Ardeth, "We have to save her. He's going to kill her."  
  
*~*~*  
  
All of the other palace maids had thought she was simple. She was Nefertiri's personal maid, which made her, Omorose, higher than the others in the social chain. The other maids began to notice the High Priest's interest in her. They thought she was stupid for not responding to his actions, for not accepting the marriage proposals.  
  
They only saw his actions in public.  
  
They never knew what happened when no one was around, how he'd corner her in an abandoned hallway and take advantage of her in her weakest moments. They knew nothing of what he was capable of. They knew nothing of what he had gotten away with.  
  
Only Nefertiri knew. Once she had caught him. After that, Nefertiri made every attempt to save her from Imhotep and at times, it just wasn't enough.  
  
All of these horrible images kept flashing before her eyes. Why was she remembering this?  
  
Monifa pressed her face against the window of the car. It had begun to rain. How fitting, she found herself thinking. She had just found her father and now she's being held hostage for some reason she couldn't grasp. She had the worst headache in the world and to top it all off, it begins to rain.  
  
The car stopped and she was forced out into cold. She shivered as she suddenly realized that she was still in her school uniform. A thick black cloak was placed on her shoulders and suddenly she was warm. She turned around to see Imhotep's decaying body. He wrapped the cloak around her more tightly to insure her comfort. For a moment, Monifa was touched by this strange act of kindness, but it quickly passed.  
  
"Don't be angry little one. You have a new family now." He told her in Ancient Egyptian.  
  
She frowned trying to figure out what he had meant by that. She looked around her trying to get a good look at her surroundings. They were outside of a mansion bigger than Alex's home.  
  
But one thing was for sure.  
  
They were still in London.  
  
There was still hope.  
  
Two men behind her were holding umbrellas as they dug through a massive trunk. She looked forward to find that Imhotep was nowhere to be seen.  
  
Something metal fell behind her. She slowly turned to see what had fallen.  
  
It was a gun.  
  
A flare gun.  
  
Her eyes widened at the sight of it. She looked at the two men who were still digging in the trunk, taking out various weapons.  
  
They hadn't realized that they dropped it.  
  
She bent down as if she was about to tie her shoes. Very carefully, she reached out for the flare gun and grabbed it by the handle. She stood as she considered her options.  
  
*~*~*  
  
The windshield wipers of Rick's car flapped back and forth rhythmically. Rick drove with Ardeth in the passenger's seat and Evelyn, Alex, and Jonathan were crammed in the back seat.  
  
They pulled out of the driveway just as flares shot up in the sky.  
  
Ardeth smiled as he recognized the Medji signal of warning. He didn't think she had remembered it.  
  
"Go to where the flares were launched." He ordered.  
  
She was still alive. There's still time. 


	6. Anything

"Stupid girl!" One of the men said realizing what Monifa had done.  
  
He closed his umbrella and struck her with it. The empty gun dropped from her hand as she fell to the mud. The man continued to hit her shriveled form.  
  
*~*~*  
  
Imhotep had seen the flares, but it didn't matter. They were all dead. No one would come for her.  
  
He had been in the study with Dr. Michael Scott. The flares shot into the sky just as the transaction was complete. The drained body of Dr. Scott fell to the floor as the fully assembled body of Imhotep headed for the door.  
  
It was funny how it took three to four men to complete him the first time, but he guessed the reincarnation of one's self was enough to do the job.  
  
That's when he heard the sound of her scream.  
  
"Omorose!" He yelled as he dashed to the front door.  
  
As soon as he got outside he raised his arms and the two men, who were supposed to keep watch, flew into the air and fell with a sickening thud.  
  
He ran over to Monifa and sat her upright. He stared into her eyes as he placed his hands on her cheeks. Her wounds began to heal in a matter of moments. As much to his shock as it was to her own, she covered his hands with hers, still staring into his eyes.  
  
They were both unable to speak. The rain kept pouring and they just sat there, in the driveway. The sudden screech of a car brought them back to reality.  
  
Imhotep helped her up as he squinted to see who was coming. Monifa knew who it was before he did.  
  
"Dad." She breathed, "Alex."  
  
Imhotep couldn't believe it. They were supposed to be dead.  
  
"Alex!!" She was screaming. Jumping up and down waving her arms.  
  
Imhotep grabbed her by the right arm and dragged her into the mansion. This was not going the way he had planned it.  
  
"Father!! Mr. O'Connell!! Alex!!!!" she kept screaming.  
  
Imhotep covered her mouth with his hand. She instantly bit it. She kicked him with her feet, trying to get free. Nothing worked. He held on to her as they entered into the front hall.  
  
Nine guards were sitting in the main room.  
  
"They're here." He growled to them, "Kill them."  
  
Monifa stopped struggling. She moved her hand to knock Imhotep's off of her mouth.  
  
"No! Don't! I'll do anything, just don't kill them."  
  
The room went deathly silent as all attention was focused on her. She instantly realized her mistake.  
  
"Anything?" Imhotep asked, moving to the front of her looking her straight in the eyes.  
  
Monifa was disgusted with what she was about to do.  
  
"Anything." She confirmed. And just to prove her point she grabbed both of his hands and gave them a squeeze.  
  
Imhotep smiled. Maybe this would work out after all.  
  
He brushed the wet hair from her face and tucked it behind her ears. He readjusted the cloak around her shoulders. He turned to the guards.  
  
"Fallow us."  
  
He held onto Monifa's shoulders and pushed her out in front of him and out the front door.  
  
It had stopped raining.  
  
The O'Connell's, Jonathan, and Ardeth stood in the driveway heavily armed.  
  
"Let her go." Ardeth warned.  
  
"Or what? You'll shoot? I am immortal, but she is not. Not yet anyway." Imhotep returned.  
  
Monifa wanted to scream out to run over to them, but she couldn't. She couldn't break a promise. They lowered their weapons.  
  
"Good. Now, if you'll excuse me, my fiancé and I are on a tight schedule."  
  
Monifa spun around.  
  
"What?!" She asked.  
  
"Anything." He reminded her.  
  
She couldn't breathe. What had she gotten herself into?  
  
Ardeth watched as his daughter cursed at Imhotep, who was fully reincarnated, in Ancient Egyptian. Fiancé? He looked at Evelyn. She was just as shocked as he was.  
  
"What?" Rick asked, "What's wrong?"  
  
"They're engaged." Alex stated.  
  
"What?!" Jonathan asked, "Why would she do that?"  
  
"To save us." Evelyn said blatantly.  
  
"How do you know that, Mum?" Alex asked clutching his rifle with an iron grip.  
  
"It's happened before."  
  
"If you'll keep your word, and I'll keep mine. Your choice." Imhotep threatened.  
  
She turned and looked at her father. She looked away, not able to look at him, and found herself staring straight into Alex's eyes.  
  
"Where will you take me?" She asked never looking away.  
  
"To our home. Where you will never see your boyfriend again."  
  
"When will we marry?" she asked not really wanting to know the answer.  
  
"On your birthday. Now, we really must get going."  
  
He pushed her towards the car that they came in, never taking his eyes off of Alex. He knew that he had heard their conversation. He gave him a wink as he opened the door for his soon-to-be bride. Monifa took one last glance at her father. One last glance at Alex. One last glance at Evelyn.  
  
"Nefertiri!" She screamed suddenly remembering something, "We're going home. Home!!"  
  
Imhotep pushed her roughly in the car and got in next to her. The guards split up and some went in Imhotep's car, the others getting in the car behind it. The last guard to get in took a small black round ball and lit a wick that was attached to it.  
  
A bomb.  
  
"I kept my word!" She screamed angrily in Imhotep's face.  
  
"And I kept mine. I'm not going to kill them. He is."  
  
The man threw the bomb and leapt in the car. They drove off, and Monifa cried as she heard the bomb explode behind her.  
  
*~*~*  
  
As the smoke cleared Rick slowly got to his feet. His face was scratched and his clothes were a little worse for wear. As everyone else started to stir he knew that they looked the same as him.  
  
Evelyn was the first to speak.  
  
"They're not going to Ahm Shere."  
  
"Where are they going then?" Jonathan asked whipping his jacket sleeve, trying to clean himself off.  
  
"They're going home. They're going to Saqqara."  
  
A/N: A big thanks to all of the reviewers so far. I just kinda want everyone to know that this may not make sense at the moment, but in the next chapter everything will start to come together. I also want you all to know that this story will most likely be a long one. With that all in mind, I hope to update in the next two to three days.  
  
Thanks again. 


	7. Everything

It was raining again.  
  
Monifa gazed intently at her lap, pretending to be interested with the way her skirt was weaved. Her hair was a wet tangled mess and she couldn't remember being so tired. Somehow, though, she couldn't bring herself sleep. Maybe it was the loud sound of thunder that boomed every other minute, or maybe it was because she was crammed between Imhotep and two other guards. She was sitting at an angle that made her practically sitting on Imhotep's lap.  
  
He didn't seem to mind one bit.  
  
He didn't seem to care that five people had just died on his command.  
  
Her father was dead. Just when he came back to her, he was killed. She was to blame. How could she have been so stupid? Because of her, innocent people had died.  
  
"You loved him, don't you?"  
  
The sudden sound of Imhotep's voice made her jump.  
  
She had no idea of where he intended to go with that, so she decided to play dumb.  
  
"Who?"  
  
"The boy, Alex."  
  
Her faced hardened and was a wave of grief swept through her.  
  
"I barely knew him."  
  
"That's my girl."  
  
Monifa tugged the cloak tighter around herself suddenly feeling naked under his gaze. She knew she had done the wrong thing by giving into him, but still, would a life with Imhotep be that bad?  
  
*~*~*  
  
They had broken into the mansion after they realized that it was empty.  
  
Alex was the one who found Mr. Scott's body. The men talked amongst themselves as Evelyn took a close look at the books that were sprawled on the floor. They had obviously been dropped at one point or an other.  
  
After a few minutes, Rick walked over to his wife who had her face buried in a thick, leather-bound book.  
  
"What is going on Evie?" He asked, silently begging her to fill him in on everything she knew.  
  
They all found seats around the dining room table.  
  
"How do you know that they are taking her to Sakkara?" Alex asked, breaking the silence.  
  
"She said that they were going home. Back when I was about twenty--" She faltered, "When I was Nefertiri, the step pyramid at Sakkara was being built, my father-the Pharaoh had insisted that I go visit and show interest for a while, he was very fixated on setting me up with the pyramid's constructor, Imhotep.  
  
"When I arrived, I had no idea that not only the pyramid being built, but shrines and temples praising Imhotep were being built as well. Hundreds of sick people were flocking to Imhotep to pray for him, to be healed by him. Anyway, there was this poor pregnant woman, who was without a husband. She had come to him for help, but found herself in labor. Imhotep, being a year or two older than me, birthed her child, a girl. The mother died in child labor; there was nothing he could have done to save her.  
  
"So there was this newborn orphan girl that Imhotep really had no interest in and could have cared less if she had died. I offered to take her back to the palace and raise her to be my personal servant. I had no intention to stay any longer and the girl couldn't have stayed in that diseased place. As soon as I held her in my arms, though, I knew something was special about her. She was the dearest little thing, so I called her Omorose meaning beautiful.  
  
"Years passed and at the completion of the pyramid, Imhotep returned. Omorose grew up to be a fine young woman, and true to her name, was very beautiful. Even though she was my servant, I treated her as a mother would treat her daughter. That's why when Imhotep started to take an obvious interest in her; I tried to keep him away from her. I never liked Imhotep and there was no way I was going to let him have her.  
  
"He kept approaching her and sometimes cornered her, all without me knowing. She had a bad feeling about him too. She kept telling me about his proposals to her and how she refused them every time. Sometimes she'd come to me in tears with her closed ripped or not on properly. Seeing how threatening her wasn't getting him what he wanted, he threatened me. That's when she said yes. She became his wife and they lived at Sakkara for a while. They came back when the Pharaoh's wife died and he wanted Imhotep to perform the wedding for him and his new love interest."  
  
"Anuk-su-namun." Rick and Jonathan said together.  
  
"The guard said something about a 'mark'. What did he mean by that?" Alex asked.  
  
"When she was born, there was a small triangle tattoo-like symbol on her back. It is a mark from the Gods." Ardeth answer.  
  
"But Mum said he was going to kill her." Alex stated.  
  
"He is. On her eighteenth birthday." Ardeth continued, "He will then resurrect her and fulfill the prophecy. Her Mark means that she'll come back with inhuman powers. Together, they could rule the world."  
  
"Who says she'll do it?" Jonathan asked.  
  
"Imhotep has effective ways of persuasion." Evelyn said darkly, "She doesn't stand a chance."  
  
A/N: Ok here it goes:  
  
I saw somewhere Sakkara spelled as Saqqara, but I am using Sakkara. In order for this story to work, I made Imhotep young and I tried to work in what the real Imhotep did in real history. I also made him build the step pyramid at a young age too and I know that the step pyramid was built for a different Pharaoh. He really wasn't that bad of a guy, and I guess I am trying to work that in somehow. I know a baby isn't bloody likely to be born with a tattoo, but keep in mind it is a mark from the Gods.  
  
If any of this bothers you in any way, write me a letter and eat it. Ha ha ha. Just kidding. I am probably being paranoid, please don't flame me for the stuff I mentioned above. If you are going to flame me, say my writing sucks and all that good stuff. Or, you know, you could not flame me at all.  
  
Anyhoo, hope I explained everything a little better in this chapter and if I didn't, everything will come together in the end. 


	8. Regrets

The five of them headed back to the O'Connells' mansion to change and regroup. Ardeth stood looking at Rick's weapon selection. He had refused the clothes Evelyn had offered him seeing how his robes had been through worse, and they weren't that damaged. A few minor adjustments and he was set. He could live through it. He didn't, however, pass up the chance for a quick shower.  
  
He sighed heavily as he carefully packed the many guns, daggers, and broadswords into a small trunk. Every time Ardeth had fought with Rick it had been for his family. He fought for Evelyn and then Alex, but now, now the battle had just gotten personal. This time it was his only daughter out there, a prisoner of Imhotep. By the time he found her it would probably be too late.  
  
"I am a terrible father." He said numbly as Rick walked up beside him.  
  
"You know, I thought the same thing when Alex was captured. I kept running over the list of things I could have done to prevent it. I kept blaming myself." Rick confessed, "Thinking like that is pointless, it only slows you down."  
  
"I never meant to leave her for as long as I did. It's just that He was back again and you needed help. Then it took so long clean everything up. It's just that Akila, my wife, didn't make it easier on me either. She made me choose the Medji or her and Monifa. I tried to have both, but look where that led us."  
  
"No matter what you would have chosen Imhotep still would have gone after her. Don't beat yourself up about this. We will get her back."  
  
Ardeth stood thinking this over.  
  
He will get his daughter back, or die trying.  
  
*~*~*  
  
Monifa woke up surprised not to be in the car. Instead she was inside a building, a house from the look of it. One quick glance at her surroundings told her that no one was in the room with her.  
  
She climbed out of the bed and headed towards the window. As soon as she opened the wooden shudders, the worm sum light fell on her as she smiled to herself.  
  
She was in Cairo.  
  
It was all a dream, one horrible nightmare.  
  
Her mother wasn't dead and neither was her father. Nor were Mr. and Mrs. O'Connell, Jonathan, or....Alex. Just the thought of him sent her stomach fluttering. She pressed her hands onto her stomach to stop that feeling to find; instead of her nightgown she was wearing her very wrinkly, very dirty school uniform.  
  
It was real.  
  
It all had been real.  
  
As the pain and depression from last night slowly drifted back to her, she walked out on to the balcony and sat on the ground, leaning against the wall of the house. Below her the villagers were hustling and bustling about. If Monifa looked closely, she could probably name a few of the venders. She knew this place like the back of her hand, but she couldn't help but feel incredibly lost.  
  
Imhotep walked out onto the balcony with her.  
  
"You're up."  
  
Monifa turned to face him, shocked a little. That was the first time she ever heard him speaking in English.  
  
"How'd you know?" She sarcastically replied.  
  
He was the last person she wanted to see at the moment.  
  
"So beautiful when angry." He said, smiling as he ran a hand through her hair.  
  
"Then I'm about to look angelic in a moment, now leave me alone."  
  
He laughed to himself a bit.  
  
"But I am here to give you answers. Isn't that what you want?"  
  
She stood up a leaned against the metal rail. Imhotep came up behind her.  
  
"Why me?" She asked as the wind played with her hair.  
  
"You already know."  
  
"Why me?" She asked more fiercely, turning and looking him squarely in the eyes.  
  
"Because I love you."  
  
"Like you loved Anuk-su-namun? You left me for her!"  
  
"Poor judgment by me."  
  
"Poor judgment?! You went and got yourself killed because you made a bad choice, is that what I am to believe?"  
  
"What do you want me to say?"  
  
"Nothing. There is nothing you can do to fix it. You left me there raising a child all on my own."  
  
For the first time in pretty much all of Imhotep's existences, he was speechless.  
  
"Don't look at me like that. She didn't live. Died shortly after birth."  
  
They stood there in silence for a while until Monifa said with tears in her eyes, "I hate you. I hate you so much."  
  
And before she could think of what she was about to do, her lips were already on his.  
  
A/N: Dun dun dun!! Finally updated. You wanted Ardeth's soft side, so I gave it to you. He was a little like a robot, wasn't he? The whole Imhotep/Monifa age difference thing, in my eyes, is no ickier then the old Pharaoh marring Anuk-su-namun. Back then older men married young girls. Oh well.  
  
Don't worry, Monifa and Imhotep wont.....you know. They'll just make out for a bit. Just incase that was bothering you or something. 


	9. Midnight

Monifa groggily woke up. She tried to bring her hands up to her pounding head, only to find her hands were bound.  
  
"Just a precaution." She heard a deep voice say from behind her.  
  
Where was she?  
  
She slowly opened her eyes, not to find herself in her room back in Cairo, but she was in an ancient room, a medical room from the looks of it. The place was eerily damp and cold. The only sound that she heard was Imhotep's breathing and her own.  
  
"Where are your guards?" She asked as Imhotep continued to walk in a circle around her.  
  
"They're getting ready."  
  
"Ready for what?"  
  
At this Imhotep smirked and bent down beside her.  
  
"For tonight. When the moon reached it's highest point, you will be of age."  
  
The way he had said that made chills run down Monifa's spine. She saw that her feet weren't bound and tried to stand up.  
  
"You drugged me!" she accused when all of her effort to stand only moved her about an inch to the left.  
  
Imhotep just shrugged.  
  
"I'll come back for you when it's time."  
  
"No!" she yelled, "Don't leave me!"  
  
But it was too late. He was gone.  
  
The dim glow of the one torch he had left her reflected her tears as they fell to the floor. What had she gotten herself into?  
  
*~*~*  
  
Night had already fallen by the time The O'Connells, Jonathan, and Ardeth had reached Sakkara. Rick and Ardeth silently took out the two guards who were keeping watch with quick cuts to the throat.  
  
"Quickly, we don't have much time." Ardeth ordered.  
  
They split up into two groups. Ardeth and Jonathan in one group, Rick, Eveyln, and Alex in the other. They split up at the first junction under the step pyramid and headed out to find Monifa.  
  
*~*~*  
  
She had lost all track of time, but her best guess was that it had been at least three hours. She had gained control of her legs, but her head still throbbed and she was pretty weak. The torch had long since been out and Monifa was truly terrified. She had no more tears left to shed and it took all of her concentration to keep her breathing slow and calm.  
  
The sounds of distant footsteps were like a symphony to her ears. She heard the sound of the stone door opening and light started to flood into the room. She shielded her eyes at the sudden brightness, but nothing prepared her for what she saw next.  
  
"Alex!" she exclaimed, her voice soft and raspy.  
  
She tried to push her self up, but fell down in the process. Alex ran and bent down beside her wrapping his arms around her.  
  
"You're alive!" she whispered, not wanting to risk having Imhotep having to come back early. She hugged him back as he and Rick slowly helped to steady her on her feet after cutting her hands free.  
  
"Mr. O'Connell! Mrs. O'Connell!" She looked at them smiling her first smile in days, "Where's dad?"  
  
"Don't worry. He's here. Right now we just need to get you out of here unnoticed." Evelyn said.  
  
"Honey, I think it's a little to late form that." Rick said in a low growl as he glanced over his wife's shoulder.  
  
Everyone turned to see Imhotep, a twisted grin on his face, standing in the open doorway.  
  
Four guards filed into the room and roughly grabbed the O'Connells. The guards took all of their weapons and threw them on the ground. With no one supporting her Monifa swayed dangerously, unable to control it. Imhotep caught her and handed her over the fourth guard.  
  
"It is time." He instructed.  
  
The four guards and their captives fallowed Imhotep down the hallway and into a large room full of hundreds of lit candles and several elaborately decorated alters. More guards stood by the back wall and Monifa cried out as she saw the two other prisoners.  
  
"Father!"  
  
"Monifa!" Ardeth's robes were badly torn and his face was littered with fresh cuts, "Don't go near him!"  
  
She tried to figure out what he meant by that. What was he saying?  
  
She turned and focused on Imhotep, who was standing on the highest alter and had both hands behind his back.  
  
"Come, my darling, tonight is the start of our new lives. Together we shall rule the land in harmony, in love."  
  
The shouts from behind her of 'don't listen to him' faded as her eyes clouded. The only person she could see and hear was Imhotep.  
  
"You and I never finished what we started. Now we can both live forever in each other's company. I will treat you like the queen you are and our wealth will be great."  
  
Monifa felt as though she was drunk on his words. It was like she was under a spell. A love spell. Imhotep's love spell.  
  
Her senses instantly cleared as she yelled out defiantly, "No!"  
  
Every on in the room seemed taken back by this, including Imhotep.  
  
"No, I will not!" She continued, "All along you have put me under a spell, some kind of trance. You never loved me. Not now and not then! I've only been an object to you, a target. I do not love you! I hate you. I hate you!"  
  
"You said that earlier and look where that led." Imhotep snapped icily, "Tell me, if you do not love me, whom do you love? You have no one but me. Who would take in a poor widowed slave who can't properly birth a child?"  
  
Every word that he had said felt like a slap in the face. Monfia felt the rage boil inside of her.  
  
"I'm still waiting for your answer. Who would want you?"  
  
Monifa didn't reply looking anywhere but at Imhotep.  
  
"Him?" Imhotep asked innocently as he pointed at Alex.  
  
"Certainly better than you." She snapped.  
  
"I think not, but it's a pity you feel that way." He leaned forward and whispered seductively in her ear, "You will be mine once I resurrect you."  
  
"What?" Monifa asked the last sentence throwing her off.  
  
Imhotep answered her by running the dagger he had hidden behind his back right through her stomach. She gasped in pain as the guard holding her let her go. She fell to her knees, the dagger still in her and looked down at her father. Everything suddenly seaming to be in slow motion.  
  
Alex broke free from his captor and ran to the fallen girl. Imhotep just laughed. Alex rushed up and held Monifa in his arms.  
  
"Alex?"  
  
She tried to smile, but it ended up as a coughing fit. Blood started to trickle down from her mouth.  
  
"Monifa, please don't...don't go. I...I love you."  
  
Alex barely noticed that Ardeth had broken free as well and was running towards them. Alex shakily ran a hand through her hair and she slowly closed her eyes.  
  
"No! Monifa, no! Stay here! Stay here!"  
  
Ardeth ran up to them and Alex handed her over to her father.  
  
"Father?" came a small whimper.  
  
"Shhh, Moni, I'm here. It's going to be all right." He cradled her like a baby and she coughed a little bit of blood onto his robe. Alex was still holding her hand. She gave his hand one final squeeze and buried her head in Ardeth's chest.  
  
And just like that, she was gone.  
  
A/N: Sorry I haven't updated for a while. Been super busy with school and crap loads of homework. All I can say is that when I first started this fic, I had no idea that this is where I would be. I have no clue how this is going to end (a good sign, no?). Don't get me wrong, everything will end up right in the end, I just don't know how to get there. I am about two to three chapters away from the end and I probably won't update for two to three weeks. Just a heads up for those of you who care.  
  
Thanks fore sticking with me this far. Look forward it an intense fight scene. The final show down begins now.  
  
Thanks again!! 


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